Britain and France to allow Deutsche Bahn to use Channel Tunnel

British and French authorities have granted German train operator Deutsche
Bahn the right to run passenger services through the Channel Tunnel, tunnel
operator Eurotunnel has said.

Eurotunnel gets a fee for each train passing through the tunnel linking Dover to CalaisPhoto: AFP

6:52PM BST 14 Jun 2013

"Twenty years after the start of commercial services, the authorities have finally opened the Channel Tunnel to all," Eurotunnel chairman and chief executive Jacques Gounon said.

The decision will boost travel between Britain and countries such as Germany and the Netherlands and will, over time, add between 3m and 4m passengers per year to the 10m already using high-speed train services, he added.

Last year, state-owned Deutsche Bahn said it would delay the launch of direct train services between London and Frankfurt to at least 2016, compared with initial plans to start the route in 2013.

Cross-Channel train services are currently operated by Eurostar, which is majority-owned by French state-owned SNCF.

Eurotunnel gets a fee for each train passing through the tunnel linking Dover to Calais.